Indulge me a brief ode to L-Theanine, a lovely little amino acid.

I usually get mine through green tea, or through matcha.

What does it do, you ask? It helps you focus and makes you sharper, similar to how coffee might. They each help you more effectively execute whatever it is you're doing.

But that's where their similarities end.

Where coffee can get you jumpy and jerky, the L-Theanine in green and black teas helps you relax.

Coffee helps you by turning up the volume on your experience of life, indiscriminately. If you'll pardon my use of medical jargon, every part of you is more "YEE-HAW!!"

L-Theanine, on the other hand, helps you by more selectively tuning out the noise on all the other things except the thing you're focusing on. Et voila! The thing you're focusing on has just become louder and clearer in relation.

Two paths to a similar destination.

What a beautiful thing this life is.